‘Arrogant’ Horner stance could spark Red Bull mass exodus amid Verstappen ‘power play’

As F1 heads to Australia, there are growing calls for Red Bull’s Christian Horner to fall on his sword to avoid an exodus from the team.

There are growing calls for “the Christian Horner show to come to an end” as the power struggle at Red Bull continues to drag on.

Horner, 50, will attend this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne in his role as team principal as a cloud hovers over his position.

A team investigation dismissed allegations of inappropriate text messages to a female employee, who has since been suspended from her job and lodged a complaint with F1’s ruling body.

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While Red Bull dominated the first two races of the year, the off-track scrutiny of Horner has never been more intense.

Three-time world champion Max Verstappen threw a cat among the pigeons when he raised the possibility he could leave Red Bull if veteran advisor Helmut Marko was forced out of the team.

With Lewis Hamilton moving to Ferrari next season, Verstappen could take his place at Mercedes in a shock switch that is becoming more possible by the day.

“There is a lot of talk about a deal being very close to being brokered between Max and Mercedes,” former F1 driver Johnny Herbert told news.com.au, per BetIdeas.com.

“Now if that actually materialises, is it a power play? Is it part of the pressure being put on Red Bull and Christian?

“There’s got to be a point where it’s ‘What is best for us? We cannot lose him (Verstappen)’. “He is such a big and important part of now our journey to the (F1 regulation) changes in 2026.

Christian Horner wants to remain in his job. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Helmut Marko is another key figure in Red Bull’s power struggle. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Herbert said Horner stepping down would be a “simple fix” for Red Bull, which needs a circuit-breaker to avoid driving the team apart.

“He seems to have the support of (Red Bull majority owner) Chalerm Yoovidhya, who’s got the 51 per cent.

“Red Bull is an advertising machine and it works brilliantly when you start winning races and championships.

“It’s not affected anything on track but down the line, it could rip it apart quite easily. And ripping it apart seems a very dumb thing to do when you’re trying to put a patch, a band-aid over the would that’s there at the moment.

“I think it’s quite a simple fix in many respects. The Christian Horner show is something that’s got to come to an end.”

Former driver Ralf Schumacher also told Sport1: “One thing is certain. As long as this chaos remains, it will do immense damage to Red Bull. Horner said that no one is more important than the team.

“Therefore, he should follow this command and resign as soon as possible.”

Herbert said Red Bull has a major decision to make over whether it keeps Horner and risk losing Verstappen, Marko and Chief Technical Officer Adrian Newey — the mastermind behind Red Bull’s championship winning cars.

Newey, 65, is on course to claim his 13th constructors’ title this season in the latest feat of a legendary career that has seen him design victorious cars at Williams, McLaren and Red Bull.

Adrian Newey is the genius behind Red Bull’s success. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Horner has been a star media performer since being appointed Red Bull team principal in 2005 and has played a role in catapulting F1 to the mainstream.

But it appears increasingly possible Red Bull could lose Verstappen, Newey and Marko if they choose to keep Horner.

“If Christian is fighting this which he seems to be doing, he might force their main star out of the team,” Herbert said.

“It seems to be the wrong way of going about it. You want to keep what you’ve got. You want to keep Adrian and you want to keep Max.

“To try and arrogantly stay put, you’re going to force your main man out of the team. That just seems to be the wrong thing to do from team perspective.

“That’s the Christian side of it where he’s fighting to stay where he is. And Helmut’s in the same position.

“But it seems the pressure is more on Helmut to get pushed out of the team and Max would go with him, potentially.

“If you look at it in a logical way, do you want to lose Max? No.”

Max Verstappen could move from Red Bull to Mercedes. (Photo by Peter Fox/Getty Images)

Former F1 driver Giancarlo Fisichella has said Verstappen would be “stupid” to move to Mercedes, a move that would see the Dutchman and Hamilton both in new colours in 2025.

Winning a world championship with a second team would make Verstappen’s case as F1’s ‘GOAT’ almost insurmountable, but switching to Mercedes could risk his ability to win races.

Herbert said: “Does he realistically feel that going to Merc gives him the chance to carry on the dominance he’s got at the moment with a car that’s going to give him a chance to win races?

“But then you think, is that the right thing as a driver for your career? What’s going to give you the best chance of winnings races?

“If Adrian stays at Red Bull, then you stay at Red Bull. Let’s say if Adrian goes to Merc, you go to Merc. As a package, that would be a smart move. But it’s about what Adrian decides to do.”

The Australian Grand Prix takes place at Albert Park in Melbourne on Sunday at 3pm AEDT. Watch every practice and qualifying session and the race on Kayo Sports.